


The Heart (Grimm X Human Male Reader) Sequel to "Shared Pain"

by AvocadoMunch



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: Action, Fluff and Angst, Grimm troupe, Hollow Knight - Freeform, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-20
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:41:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 14,083
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27108151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AvocadoMunch/pseuds/AvocadoMunch
Summary: THIS STORY IS A SEQUEL TO "SHARED PAIN" SO IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THAT THEN THIS BOOK WON'T MAKE SENSEFollowing the story of "Shared Pain", the reader will go with the Nightmare King to try and destroy the Nightmare Heart once and for all. With a return to the troupe, the reader once again dives deep into the history of the troupe they're a part of.cover art is done by u/ztufs on reddit, which they deserve more attention because their art is amazing!
Comments: 1
Kudos: 12





	1. Back to the Troupe

**Author's Note:**

> Before you read:  
> On December 25th I decided to completely re-work this story, so if you've been reading it just know that whatever you have read is now no longer what this story will be about. I wasn't happy with how it was written nor was I happy with where it was going. The title was also changed from "Civil War", to "The Heart". 
> 
> Sorry for changing the story up so much, and if you liked where the old story was going then maybe I'll make a spin-off, or use the same plotline for a different book. One without (y/n). 
> 
> Other than that, I hope you enjoy the story, albeit with an entirely new plot!
> 
> I would also like to give a quick shout out to Snow_Is_Random and Void_Lake. They're both excellent writers and have been very helpful throughout my time writing. I would highly recommend both of their stories, and to fans of the Nightmares Series, the third book in the trilogy was released a few weeks ago so go read it! Otherwise, take care and be good people. 
> 
> ALSO: THIS IS YOUR MATURE CONTENT WARNING FOR THE STORY. THIS IS INTENDED FOR MATURE AUDIENCES AND WILL HAVE MATURE THEMES AND SYMBOLS. IF YOU ARE BOTHERED BY ANY OF THIS THEN MAYBE DON'T READ, SORRY.
> 
> -avocado (aka munch)

You were walking down the street by yourself, holding the groceries you had just purchased. You moved in with your mom after you came back to the human world, and it had been six months since you had returned from Hallownest.

"Hey mom," you said as you walked in. "Anything interesting?" You asked, seeing she was watching the news.

"No, not really. Just more of politicians being stupid," she said angrily.

"Well, what more can you expect?" You asked rhetorically. "I'm gonna video call with some of my friends."

"Sounds good. Have fun, (y/n)." Your mother waved as you entered your room.

You walked in and set your stuff down on the floor before slumping down in your chair. You opened your laptop and almost immediately you were receiving a call from Hanna. You accepted the call and began talking with her and your old dorm roommate, Kellen.

"Hey guys, how's it hangin'?" You asked.

"Pretty good, yourself?" Hanna replied.

"I'm doin' well, can't complain."

"Any word from the Nightmare King?" Kellen asked.

You had told Hanna and Kellen because you trusted them and because Kellen saw you use your powers to return home from Hallownest, so he knew you had them anyway.

"Not yet, I'm still waiting," you said truthfully. "I miss Grimm a lot."

"Just keep waiting, something's bound to turn up and you'll have a reason to go back," Hanna said with a smile. You had proven to Hanna of Hallownest's existence by showing her of your powers, and that was all you needed to do to convince her that your experience in Hallownest actually happened.

The reason you three were talking on a video call was that you three lived in separate cities. You moved to San Fransisco with your mom, Kellen moved out to a small town in Illinois with his girlfriend, and Hanna was studying abroad and was currently in Italy.

You three talked well into the night, making all of you tired. Your mother had made you dinner and brought it in so that you could continue talking with your friends, which you were very thankful for. Hanna was the only one not tired since it was midday for her. You three eventually ended your conversation and you closed your laptop for the night. You struggled to find the energy to get up out of your desk chair and into your bed, but eventually, you did.

You fell asleep easily, seeing as you were incredibly tired. As you fell asleep, your vision was replaced with a red haze and you felt a tugging sensation on your chest.

~~~

You opened your eyes and saw you were in your room, but there was a red haze everywhere. You knew where you were.

"Hello, (y/n)." You heard the Nightmare King and looked to see him in the corner of your room.

"Hello, Nightmare King. What's going on?" You asked. "If you called me here then something must've come up, right?"

"Well," he began. "I would like you to assist me in taking care of the Nightmare Heart," he said. You knew exactly what he meant when he said 'taking care of', but you weren't entirely sure if you were ready for that. 

"Does... does this mean I'll be going back to Hallownest?" You asked, hopeful. You had missed Hallownest. The capital city, the Blue Lake, all of it. 

"You'll be going back to the troupe, but the troupe currently isn't in Hallownest," he informed you. 

This piqued your curiosity, "Where are they exactly?"

"I personally have no idea," he said. "There are plenty of other kingdoms outside of Hallownest." 

You thought for a moment. "I have to tell my family and friends about this. They have to know that I'm going away again," you said. "They all thought I had died the last time I went to your world, and it's a possibility that I might die this time. They have the right to know that I'm at least going to leave." 

The Nightmare King was understandably displeased with this, but said, "I guess you're right. Go. Tell them and be back as soon as you can." 

"Of course," you said. "Thank you for allowing me to go and at least tell them I'm leaving," you bowed before waking yourself up. 

You looked over at your mirror and saw that your eyes were glowing bright red once more, as they had when you accepted the Nightmare Heart's pure power, or more accurately the Nightmare King's power that the Nightmare Heart stole. You put on a pair of skinny black jeans, and a hoodie that was half red and half black, the top half red and the bottom half black. You walked out of your room and into the living room, your mother was still watching TV on the couch. 

"Oh hey, (y/n). Trouble sleeping?" She asked, hearing you come in. She had yet to look at you, but when she did she was taken aback. "(y/n)... your eyes..." 

"Mom," you started. "I'm going to be gone again for a while," you informed her. Her eyes filled with sadness at these words. 

"Why, honey? Why can't you just stay here, with me?" She asked. She loved you dearly and you knew it, but you also knew that she was an emotional wreck without you. With your father abusing both of you, you had to be the one to stand up to him for the both of you. She was very obviously frightened of him, but you had grown to be fearless of him. 

"Because, Mom. I have... otherworldly responsibilities," you said, trying to come up with a way to describe your situation. 

"What do you mean?" She was incredibly confused. 

"I... I'm sorry I have to leave, but I promise I'll be back again," you said. "I just don't know how long I'll be away." 

Your mother had tears forming in the corner of her eyes. "Please, (y/n). We've been doing so good for ourselves here. What kind of responsibilities could a 22-year-old have that would be otherworldly?" She was becoming desperate, her desperation was making tears come to your eyes as well. 

You sighed and summoned a small ball of flame above your palm. "I have special abilities that no other human does, at least to my knowledge. I have people to protect... People that I love, and I would do anything to keep safe," you said, full streams of tears were running down both of your faces. 

She sighed and stood up. She made her way over to you and looked up into your scorching red eyes. "Go," she said. "Go protect those who matter so much to you," her voice was shaky. She grabbed your hands tightly. "But you have to promise me you'll return safely. Promise me." 

Your lip began to quiver as you started to cry, "I promise, Mom. I love you." You wrapped your arms around her tightly, and she did the same. Eventually, she let you go and smiled at you. 

"Well, I can't keep you here," she said. "Good luck, (y/n)." 

"Thanks, Mom." You smiled back. With that, you went to your room. You quickly opened your laptop and began to video call Hanna. 

"Pick up, pick up, pick up," you were whispering to yourself. After a while, Hanna finally did answer. 

"(y/n)? It's like two in the morning for you, what are you doing?" She asked. 

"He called," you said. This immediately caught Hanna's interest. 

"The Nightmare King called you back? When are you going?" She asked quickly. 

"Right now. I'm just calling to tell you that I'm leaving," you said. "If I die, well..." 

"Don't say that." Her voice was stern. "You won't die." 

You chuckled, "Goodness, you sound like Grimm." 

"Well don't keep him waiting!" She said. "Go. See your boyfriend." She smiled. 

"I'll be back before you know it," you said. 

"Good luck, (y/n)." She waved before hanging up. 

You went to your bed and sat down, beginning to focus incredibly hard. You envisioned yourself in the tent once more, picturing it in your head. You began to feel a slight tugging sensation on your chest.

~~~

You found yourself sitting on a couch, there was a fireplace in front of you as well. The walls were a familiar shade of red, and you knew exactly where you were. You took in the familiar burning smell and smiled. It had been too long since you had gone away. 

"(y/n)...?" You heard a small voice behind you and found a Grimmkin standing in the doorway of the room. 

You smiled at them and said, "I'm back." 

They quickly scrambled out of the room, presumably to go get Grimm, but you stopped them. 

"I'll go to him myself," you said. They nodded and scurried away. The new tent provided to the troupe by the Pale King was a pretty different layout than the last, but it was easy to figure out which room was Grimm's, considering his door was the grandest. 

You knocked on the door only to hear a disgruntled, "Come in." from the other side. You opened the door to find Grimm furiously writing on various papers, clearly stressed and overworked. You walked over and put your hands on his shoulders, to which he immediately tensed up. 

"Remember me?" you asked him with a smile. Instantly, he turned around and lit up with joy. 

"(y/n)! You've finally returned!" He quickly wrapped his arms around you, enveloping your body. "Not that I'm complaining, but what's brought you back?" He asked. 

You pulled away from the hug so that you could look Grimm in the eyes, "The Nightmare King had some... business he needed to attend to and requested my assistance as he did it." 

He grew slightly concerned. "Well, I had originally hoped your return to not involve such... danger. But I guess that's something outside of my control," he said. "I'm just glad you're back." 

"I'm glad to be back," you said with a warm smile. 

"Do you want me to show you around the new tent? It's quite a bit different than the old one," he offered. 

With a smirk, you said, "I'd love you to." 

~~~

Grimm had shown you around the tent, and you were able to memorize the layout relatively easily. "What do you think?" He asked at the end of the tour. 

"I love it!" You exclaimed. "I'm so glad that we a tent after..." your words trailed off but Grimm knew where they were going to go. "Any news on Brumm and Divine?" You asked. They had gone missing after the Radiance's attack on the tent, but you never went to look for them. 

"Unfortunately, none." His voice filled with sadness. "But we're still hopeful." 

You put a hand on Grimm's shoulder. "We'll find them," you wanted to give him hope because even though he said the troupe was hopeful, you knew he wasn't. 

Grimm looked down at you and smiled. Changin topics of conversation, he asked, "How has your life in the human world been?" 

"Good!" you said. "I moved in with my mom because I can't afford a place of my own, but also she really does need me," you said with a twinge of sadness. "Dad left her in such a mess, she was never able to fully recover. I'm all she has left, and I don't think she's ready to let go yet," you said, breaking eye contact. 

"I'm so sorry to hear that, (y/n). I hope she finds peace," he said. 

"Me too," you said. "I'm just not sure." You stared at nothing for a while before recollecting yourself. "But yeah, things have been going pretty well for us." 

"Well that's good to hear," he said, smiling. "How long do you think you'll be here?" 

You pondered the question. "I'm not entirely sure. However long this will take, but I may stay for a bit afterward as well." 

"I'd like that," he said. "I've missed you dearly." 

"I've missed you too, Grimm," you said. "It's been too long." 

"It really has been." 

_Okay so let me explain. I originally typed out the first like 8 or so chapters of Civil War thinking they were good. But after several people pointed out plotholes, and after I read it back again myself, I realized it wasn't. I'm going to be completely scrapping the Civil War idea with the Black Wyrm (that was the original plot of this story) and I'm going to focus more on the troupe itself, because people don't want to read Grimm Troupe fanfics just to then only see Grimm once every chapter then have it be about Hallownest's political squabbles the rest of the time. That's not fun for anyone to read, nor was it fun for me to write. Anyways, hopefully y'all will enjoy the new plot. I have big things in mind and I can't wait to put them down on paper._

_-avocado (aka munch)_


	2. Love and Nightmares

You were sitting on the couch you had woken upon. There was a small flame you had summoned dancing on your fingertips ever so delicately. It was calming to watch the fire frolic along your fingers, it brought you a sense of relief to be able to openly use your powers. The fire pit in front of you was crackling, and it provided a sense of security. 

Grimm walked into the room and sat down next to you on the couch. He didn't say anything, he didn't need to. You leaned up against him and he draped an arm across your shoulders. 

"Where are we?" You asked him.

"A small kingdom, far from Hallownest," he said. "A kingdom called Stolia. They are known for their professionalism and take pride in their manners. It's one of the most formal places I know of." 

"Doesn't seem like my kinda place," you said honestly. "I'm not exactly the most formal person in the world." 

Grimm chuckled a small bit, "Neither am I, but they're paying us to perform so we are obligated to follow their rules." 

You sighed, "I guess that makes sense." The fireplace's crackling filled the empty silence in the room. 

Eventually, Grimm said, "This will be our seventh kingdom since visiting Hallownest. Normally there would've been more, but we spent a long time in Hallownest." 

You looked up at Grimm, "Some of us may still be there," your voice showed the slightest hint of sadness. 

"Brumm and Divine," he confirmed. "We have no idea where they are. I don't even know if they're still alive. Knowing the Radiance, they might not be." 

You sat up and put a hand on Grimm to try and comfort him, "Hey, don't say that. We don't know where they are, but we know that they are incredibly strong and resilient people. I feel like they're just fine." 

Grimm smiled, "I bet you're right." 

You smiled back, "Of course I'm right." You leaned in and kissed Grimm. Once you pulled away you went back to leaning against his shoulder. The warmth of the fire and the comfort of Grimm's body was enough to pull you into slumber. You also hadn't realized how truly tired you were, considering it was the middle of the night when you had left your home. Eventually, you fell asleep. 

~~~

You came to in the middle of a forest, the sky above you was blood red. The ground also had a red tint, and as you stood you realized everything had a reddish tint to it. But the sky was a redcurrant color, a very distracting and offputting color of red. Your nerves began to make themselves known as you walked through the red forest, fear and anxiety crawling their way up your back. 

"Hello?" You called out to anyone who would respond. No one did. 

You called out a few more times before giving up and continuing to walk. You summoned a large ball of Nightmare Flame above your hand for light, as it was getting darker and darker as you continued through the red forest. As you came into a clearing, you noticed a large hill in front of you, a single tree sitting dormant on top. As you came closer to the hill, your head began to ache and your vision went blurry. The pain became so prominent you fell to your knees, clutching your head. As your vision fully faded into blackness, you heard the faintest sound of whispering. You couldn't decipher it, your head hurt too much, and before you knew it you were somewhere else entirely. 

Your vision came back to you, the ache in your head gone, and you looked around in your old college dorm room. The red tint was gone, and you looked out the window. The sky was covered by clouds, except for one portion. The part of the sky that was cloudless had a ray of sunshine coming down through it. As you walked through the halls of your old dorm and out into the street, you noticed dream catcher particles floating daintily throughout the air. 

"Hello?" You called out once more. Nobody responded. 

You walked the empty streets of your old college town, there were no people, no cars, no signs of any life. Just the buildings, the road, and you. You continued to walk; what else was there to do? Your head was racing with thoughts of confusion and panic, although there was no fear present. 

You continued to walk. 

"(y/n)?" You heard Grimm's voice far behind you and immediately turned around. "(y/n), where are we?" 

"Grimm?" You called out. You were confused as to why he was here. Suddenly, a white nail came from behind Grimm and shot through his chest, coming out the other side. 

"NO!" You shouted you began to run towards Grimm quickly, faster than you knew you could. You quickly came up to Grimm and looked at the nail that was stabbed through his chest. You didn't know what to do, and tears were streaming down your face. 

Grimm's eyes were wide as he looked down at the weapon sticking out of his chest. He looked back up at you and tears began to fall down his face. 

"I didn't do enough..." He whispered. 

"What?" You asked desperately. "What do you mean?"

"I'm sorry..." he said with an even fainter whisper. Slowly, Grimm's body began to crumble to dust in front of you, making your sobbing even harder. 

"No..." you whispered tearfully as you watched the dust blow away in the wind. "Come back..." Your lip began to quiver and you openly began to sob. The sob then turned into a scream. 

You shot up off of the couch with a sharp intake of air. You looked around and found yourself in the common room once more. You saw the crackling fireplace, the red walls, and all of the furniture. 

"What's wrong, (y/n)?" you turned and saw Grimm sitting on the couch. 

You slowed your rapid breathing and said, "Nothing... nothing. Just a bad dream is all." You sat back down next to Grimm. 

Grimm looked concerned. "Are you alright?" 

"Yeah... yeah, I'm fine," you said. You wanted to push the dream out of your head and just forget about it. 

"Maybe we should get something to eat?" He suggested. "They have some of the finest restaurants in this town." 

You took a deep sigh, "That sounds lovely." You stood off the couch. As you went to leave, you quickly turned to ask Grimm, "Are... are my old clothes still here?" 

"Of course. Nobody has stayed in that room since you have," he said with a smile. 

"Lovely, I'm gonna go and change, I'll meet you back here in 15 minutes?" You asked. 

"Sounds good to me." 

~~~

You were in your room deciding what to wear. Flicking through all of the old outfits in your wardrobe brought back memories of your time in Hallownest. You pulled out the dress you had worn on your first performance with the troupe. You kept flicking through until you came across the black jumpsuit that Divine had given you. It had large black pants that went above your waist, and the top was asymmetrical, leaving one of your shoulders exposed. You sighed remembering Divine and decided that was going to be what you would wear. 

You worked yourself into the jumpsuit, which wasn't the easiest thing in the world given its more feminine design. But you put it on and loved the way you looked in it anyway. You went into the bathroom to fix your hair. Once it looked the way you wanted it to, you left your room and went back to the common room. 

"You look wonderful tonight, (y/n)," you heard Grimm's voice from behind you. You turned and saw that Grimm looked wonderful as well. He was wearing a red button-down shirt, black form-fitting pants, and atop his shirt was a bright white vest and bow-tie. 

"You look even better," you said, giving Grimm a small smirk. His cheeks went a soft shade of pink from the compliment. His eyes seemed to have a sparkle in them that you could stare at for hours. 

"So, shall we get going?" He asked. 

"We shall." He held out his hand for you to take and led you out the door. You held hands with him as you walked down the cool city street with Grimm. 

"This place is very nice," you said. "Although there isn't much color." 

"As I said, they take pride in their professionalism," he said, looking around at the city you were walking in. 

"I can see what you mean now," you said. You could see inside the windows that everybody was wearing incredibly fancy clothing. "So how far is the restaurant?" You asked. 

"Not far," Grimm said. "Just around the corner." He led you down the street and took a right around a corner. "Here." He took your hand and led you inside. 

As you walked in, you took in your surroundings. The building was dimly lit, candles on each table. It had a surprising amount of parallels to high-end restaurants in the human world. 

"Table for two?" the host asked. 

"Yes please," Grimm said. 

"Right this way," the host said, giving a forced smile before turning and leading you two down the restaurant. You received looks from various bugs sitting at the restaurant. Some were looks of disgust, others were looks of confusion. Clearly, none of them had ever seen a human before, or if they had it wasn't in a good light. 

As you sat down, the host asked. "Any wine for us tonight?" 

"Yes please, thank you," Grimm said as he sat down. "Much appreciated." 

The host walked off. 

"Thank you so much for taking me here, Grimm. This place is beautiful," you said, looking around. 

"Not as beautiful as you," he said, smiling. 

You let out a small laugh. "That had to have been the most cliche thing I think I've heard you say." 

Grimm laughed as well. "Well, it's true nonetheless." 

"I love you, Grimm," you said. 

"I love you too." 

You took a look at the menu but then remembered you couldn't read it. They spoke English but they didn't write it; instead writing in their own language best compared to hieroglyphics. 

"Need some help?" Grimm said, chuckling as he saw you looking at the menu with pure confusion. 

"Yeah..." you said, letting out a small laugh yourself. "I still haven't learned how to read whatever language things are written in here." 

"I'll always find it strange that we speak the same language but have different ways of writing it," he said. "Truly a mystery." 

While Grimm was helping you order, the server came back with a bottle of wine and two oddly shaped glasses. He set one down in front of you and one in front of Grimm. As he was pouring them, he asked, "Have we decided what we want to eat tonight?" 

Grimm ordered for himself, and for you as well. With that, the server left to go bring the order to the kitchen, leaving you two alone again. 

"After we're done here, would you want to walk around the rest of the city with me? Despite how bland it is there are some marvelous sights to see," Grimm asked, clearly hoping you would say yes. 

"I would love to," you said. "I've been wanting to explore this place since I got here," you admitted. 

"You are the explorative type," he said with a smile. 

You talked for a while, making conversation as you waited for your food to arrive. Once it did, the conversation didn't stop. You talked about anything you could think of. 

"So what was your childhood like?" You asked Grimm. You were genuinely curious, as you had no idea what he was raised like. 

"Oh, it's not that interesting. I was raised by a bug whose name I can no longer remember," he admitted. "Because of the ritual, my father died early on in my life. I remember very little of him, only that he was a good man." 

"I'm sorry to hear that, Grimm. Losing a parent at such an early age must have been hard," you said, taking his hand into yours. 

"It's alright, really," he said, wrapping his fingers around yours. "I'd ask you the same question, but..." he didn't finish his sentence but you knew where it was going. 

"It's okay. My childhood, other than what my father did, was pretty average I guess. Although, I guess I shouldn't really be calling him my father because in all actuality he isn't," you said. "I have no idea who my actual father is, apparently the man who said he was my father was just an affair my mother was having." 

A look of concern grew on Grimm's face. "Oh my, I'm terribly sorry to hear such a thing." 

"It's fine," you said. "He ended up in prison anyway, so I don't have to see him anymore. Not for another few years at least." 

The table fell silent after that. You took a bite of your food and realized it was delicious. "Grimm this is amazing, what is it?" You asked. 

"A kynmeat based pasta," he said as if it was obvious. 

"It's super good," you admitted. It was an unusual taste, but a surprisingly good one. "What is kynmeat?" You asked. 

"You've had it before," he said. "It's an incredibly common livestock." 

"Hmm," you hummed. 

You and Grimm continued your conversation as you finished eating, making small talk about various things, laughing at each other's jokes, and as you were doing so it reminded you of why you fell in love with Grimm in the first place. He was the first face you met in Hallownest, and although his appearance seemed daunting at first, you quickly realized how attractive it was. But also he had an incredible personality, it just took some digging for you to find it. 

"Thank you so much for taking me out tonight Grimm," you said as you walked with him down the city street. "I've missed this." 

"I have to," he said. Your memories of your journey to the Blue Lake with him came back into your head. "There's something I want to show you," he said, taking your hand into his. 

"Lead the way," you said with a smirk. You felt the warmness of his hands and it provided a feeling of comfort. 

~~~

"Sorry for making you walk this far," he said. "But I think it's worth it for this," he was leading you atop a hill on the edge of the city. 

"It's no problem. I like walking," you said. He led you to the top of the hill, and what you saw was incredible. It was a stunning view of the entire city. "Grimm, this is amazing." 

He sat down on the ground and said, "It truly is." 

You sat down next to him, leaning your head against his chest. He put an arm around you, holding you tight against him. You were incredibly relaxed, feeling the heat of his body surround you. 

"You're adorable, (y/n)," he said, looking down and placing a kiss on the top of your head. 

You let out a small chuckle, "Shut up," you said, leaning up to kiss him. You let his lips meet yours, pressing them together. You enjoyed his taste, trying to savor it as long as time would allow. Eventually, you pulled away. 

"I love you, Grimm," you said, leaning your head into his chest. 

"I love you too." 


	3. The Restorer of Balance

You and Grimm laid out on the hill above the city for quite some time before eventually, you decided it best to head back to the tent. As you were walking back through the city, you noticed a plaque attached to a fountain in the middle of the town square. You stopped to read it: 

"Dedication to the Restorer Of Balance, the One from Another World who Came Down and Sacrificed Their Life to Bring Peace Between the Nightmare And Dream Realms, Bringing Order From Which There Was Chaos." 

You looked at it with confusion. 

"Word about me spread all the way to here?" you asked. "That happened half a year ago in Hallownest." 

"Well, their information isn't totally correct," Grimm pointed out. "They think you're dead." 

"That's true," you said. "Maybe I should let it stay that way." 

"Why's that?" Grimm asked. 

You sighed as you stared at the fountain, "It could draw attention where we don't need it," you said. 

Grimm went up and stood beside you. "Maybe that's not a horrible thing," he suggested. "You don't have to hide in the shadows just because you're different, (y/n)." 

You stared at the fountain in silence. After a while of thought, you said, "Maybe." 

Grimm put his arm around you and pulled you close. "I think you being what you are is a wonderful thing," he said. "No matter how different it makes you." 

You let Grimm wrap his arms around you and said, "Thank you." 

"You're welcome, (y/n)," he said, holding on to you. Eventually, he gently released his arms from around you and back down to his sides. "Let's get going, shall we?" He asked. 

"We shall," you responded, taking his hand as you walked. 

As you walked down, you passed by various people. They were all wearing fancy clothing, and you could tell your jumpsuit definitely stood out. 

"You look lovely tonight, miss," someone said behind you, startling you slightly. 

You quickly turned and said, "Oh, thanks! I'm not a woman, though," you nervously chuckled. 

Seeing the look on the bug's face, you could tell that clearly wasn't the right thing to say. "Does that mean you're..." He trailed his words but you could tell where they were going. 

"Yeah, I'm gay," you said simply. "I'm sorry if that bothers you, that's just how I am." 

"It does bother me," he said shortly, offending you. 

"Look, sir, we're just trying to get back to our tent. We don't want any trouble, so if you don't mind we'll just be going," Grimm said. 

"Oh no, please, do tell me: What's it like being unnatural?" His words were like a blow to the stomach. You hadn't had been called that by anybody other than your father. 

"That's out of line, sir," Grimm said, raising his voice. "Now, if you don't mind. We'll be leaving." Grimm looked at you and saw that you were incredibly angry. "(y/n), don't listen to him. He doesn't know what he's saying." 

"I know perfectly well what I'm saying!" He called. That pushed you over the edge. 

You walked up to him and your eyes began to glow red, "Listen, sir, I didn't come here to be judged," you didn't see it, but there were glowing golden lines traveling up and down your body as well. "Again, I apologize that the way I was _born_ is offensive to you, but I won't take this harassment." You only stopped talking when you saw the look of fear on his face. You sighed and looked over at your reflection in a store window next to you. 

"What... how..." his words were few and far in between, clearly showing confusion. 

"I-... I'm sorry if I scared you," you said, controlling your emotions. The red glow in your eyes and the golden glowing lines faded away as you became levelheaded once more. 

"What... What are you?" He asked. 

You sighed. "Read the plaque." 

His eyes opened even wider. "No... Surely not." 

You summoned a Nightmare Flame above one hand and a ball of light energy above the other.

"You're the Restorer of Balance?" He asked. 

"Wish I wasn't," you said. "Now, we'll be leaving. Good night, sir." You walked away, not letting him say anything else. Grimm looked concerned but didn't say anything as you walked back towards the tent. As he walked, he slowly took your hand into his, which you accepted. He gripped your hand tightly, and you felt bad for making him worry. 

~~~

"Did you really mean what you said, (y/n)?" Grimm asked. You were with him in his room, not yet tired enough to sleep in your own room. "About not wanting to be the 'Restorer of Balance' or whatever it is they call you? Are you not happy?" 

You quickly said, "I'm happier than ever, Grimm," you said honestly. "I was just... caught up in the moment I guess. There's no good way to describe it," you were struggling to find the words. "I'm glad I have these abilities, and I'm even more glad that I met you, Grimm. " You put a hand on his shoulder. "Honest."

"Well as long as you're happy, then I won't ask again," he said, "But if there is anything making you uncomfortable let me know." He took your hands and held them in his. "Please." 

You gave Grimm a soft smile. "Of course. I love you, Grimm," you said, enveloping him in your arms. "I don't think I could've found a better boyfriend on Earth." 

"I love you too, (y/n)," he said, pulling you close to him. "I don't think I would have found love at all had I not met you." 

"Oh don't say that," you said. "I'm sure there are plenty of bugs who would want to love you as I do," you tried to reassure him. "You're very loveable," you added, giving him a smirk. 

His cheeks went pink as he said, "Maybe, but most people I've ever been in a relationship just desired the status that came with being my partner," his voice became sadder. "True love was never really a thing I thought I was allowed, honestly." 

"I'm sorry to hear that, Grimm," you said. "You know I'd never do that to you," you said with an obvious honesty to your voice. You genuinely cared about Grimm and would never want to see him hurt. 

He moved his face close to yours, "I know," he said. He then moved in to kiss you. You leaned up to meet him halfway, letting him press his lips against yours. After he pulled away, he said, "I love you so much, (y/n)." 

"I love you too," you leaned your head on his chest, and feeling the comfort of his warmth surrounding you, it became hard to resist falling asleep. 

~~~

You found yourself in the middle of a forest. Everything had a red tint to it, and you couldn't think of how, but you knew you'd been here before. As you walked through the forest, the hairs on the back of your neck stood. It was incredibly nerve-wracking, and you felt fear and anxiety crawling around in your mind as you continued to walk through the red forest. 

You came into a clearing and approached a hill. It seemed vaguely familiar, but suddenly your head started searing with pain. It was unbearable and made you crumble to your knees. As you were clutching your head, your vision started to fade away.

Once your vision came back, you saw yourself in your college dorm. Everything about what you were experiencing seemed familiar in some way, but you couldn't place your finger on what about it was familiar. You walked out of your dorm room and onto the street. As you walked down the street, any sign of life that was normally there wasn't. Again, a feeling of deja vu was creeping its way up your back. 

"(y/n)?" You heard Grimm's voice from behind you. "(y/n), where are we?" 

You turned and saw Grimm standing a ways away from you. "I'm not sure," you said, walking towards him. "Have we been here before? It feels like-"... You were cut off by a white nail shooting out through his chest. "NO!" You screamed and began to run towards him. 

Grimm looked down at the weapon sticking out of his chest. "I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't do enough." 

"What?" you asked. "What do you mean?" Tears were falling hard and fast from your eyes. Before he could answer your question his carapace turned into dust and floated away in the wind. Your tears fell fast, and you fell to your knees crying. Slowly, your vision faded away once more. 

"(y/n)? (y/n) are you okay?" When your vision returned you saw Grimm hovering over you. You had fallen asleep lying against his chest. 

You slowly sat up, "Yeah... just a bad dream," you said. "I feel like I've had it before, though." 

"What happened in the dream?" He asked, concerned. 

"I... I was walking through a red forest. It opened up to reveal a hill, but once I got to the hill my head began to hurt a lot," you recalled. "Then I found myself in my old college dorm. When I walked outside and down the street, I heard you behind me," you explained. This caused a look of worry on his face. "When I tried to walk up to you a... a nail shot through your back and out the front of your chest..." you explained, beginning to tear up once more. "You apologized then said something about not doing enough." Tears were falling down your face. 

"I'm so sorry to hear that, (y/n)," he said, pulling you close and enveloping you in his arms. His body was very warm, and it was an incredibly comforting feeling, having it surround you. 

You laid silently in his arms for a while, until you had a question crawl into your mind. "Say, are there any more performances here?" You had missed performing with the troupe. 

"Yes actually, we have one more tomorrow before we find another kingdom to travel to," he said. 

"Will this one be in front of the monarchs here?" You asked, remembering that the last performance in each kingdom was performed for a royal audience. 

"Indeed it will be," he said. "Would you like to perform?" He asked, looking down into your eyes. Maybe it was just your imagination, but the red in Grimm's eyes seemed to be a bit darker than normal. 

"I'd love to!" you exclaimed. You truly did miss performing with the troupe, and it had been quite some time since you previously had. 

"That's wonderful to hear, (y/n)," he said. placing a small kiss on the top of your head. "We should get some sleep," he said, removing his arms from around you. It didn't want to leave, but you knew he was correct. 

"I guess so," you said, slightly disappointed. 

"It is incredibly late," he chuckled. 

You slowly got off of the bed and stood up, he followed suit. "Goodnight Grimm," you said, giving him one last embrace before turning in. 

"Goodnight, (y/n)," he said, wrapping his arms around you. "I love you." 

"Love you too, Grimm," you said. You dropped your arms and went towards the door. You closed the door as you left and made your way down the hall to your room. As you made your way inside your room, you went through your nightly routine before getting into your bed. You hadn't realized how tired you truly were until you were in bed. You drifted off to sleep with ease. 

~~~

It was the next morning when you were deciding what to wear for the day. You decided to wear a dark grey button-up shirt with a bright red tie hanging down the front. On top of that was a black vest, and you also had black formal pants on. As you made your way out of your room, you walked outside, wanting to get some fresh air. 

You quickly found your way to the door, and as you looked outside you saw the sky was a bright grey color. You took in the smell of the kingdom you were in and thought of how foreign it was compared to San Fransisco. You thought of home, and slowly your thoughts drifted to your mother. You had no idea what she thought of you being the way you are. When you left she seemed proud, but you had no way of knowing until you returned. Maybe she was proud? Maybe she was scared of what you were? Anybody would be scared of you if you revealed your abilities to them. You had kept them a tight secret while on Earth but you didn't know how long that secret would last. 

"What's on your mind?" You heard from behind you. Grimm walked up next to you and put a hand on your shoulder. 

"A lot," you said, staring into the distance at nothing. 

"Anything specific?" He asked. 

You sighed. "When people in my world find out I am what I am, what would they think?" 

"I'm sure they'd look up to you," he said. "Maybe they'd see you as an inspiration. I know I would." 

You let a small laugh escape your mouth. "I think they'd be shit-scared of me," you said. "What I can do isn't natural," you said, summoning a small Nightmare Flame and a beam of light to look at, "The only people who would look up to me would be children who would think me a superhero." You hung your head and shrugged. "Everyone else would assume the worst. They'd think I'd use my powers for evil. They'd think me a monster." 

"You're no monster, (y/n)," Grimm was quick to rebuttal. "If they'll assume the worst then show them the best." 

You looked into Grimm's eyes. They showed you how much he truly cared for you. You suddenly decided to hug him, wrapping your arms around him. "Thank you, Grimm," you said. "Nobody else knows what I'm going through, I'm glad I have you." 

He returned the hug and said, "You're incredibly special to me, (y/n). I wouldn't be where I am today had I not met you." 

"The same goes for me as well," you said. "I wouldn't have these abilities, seen such a wonderful world I never knew of or even met such wonderful people had I not met you." 

He pulled away from the hug, and you were able to see what he was wearing as well. He had a white button-up shirt that was ruffled, the top few buttons were also undone. 

"Let's go in for breakfast, shall we?" He asked. 

You gave a small smile and sighed, "We shall."

_Holy shit this chapter took me so long to write and I don't even know why. Sorry if my update schedule has been fucked recently, I just have a lot of personal stuff going on in my life that I need to take care of. If I go radio silent for a while, that would be why. Thanks to everyone who's reading, and also WTF SHARED PAIN IS AT #1 IN THE GRIMMTROUPE TAG ON WATTPAD RN YALL ARE CRAZY! Thank you so much for all the support, it really does mean a lot to me._

_-avocado (aka munch)_


	4. Repetitive Dreams

You were preparing for that night's show, deciding what outfit to wear mainly. Looking through your wardrobe, there was plenty to chose from. After the encounter you had with the man in the city, you decided that it would be best not to wear any more feminine clothing while here, so you threw on a white button-up, black tie, red vest to go on top of it, and black pants. It was always fascinating to you how these clothes would be considered formal where you live, but here they're mostly casual. 

You made your way backstage and came into plenty of hustle and bustle, which was normal right before a show. All of the Grimmkin were frantically running around, putting props in their place, making sure the outfits looked perfect, etc. 

"(y/n)! You made it," Grimm said, walking up to you. Grimm was wearing an all-black tuxedo with a cloak overtop. 

"Hi!" You said, giving a small wave. "Hey, is the order of the acts still the same?" You were curious. 

"Yes, except for the dancers," he said. "Without Brumm..." his words trailed. 

Grimm seemed to become slightly sadder, "Hey," you said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "We'll find them." 

He smiled and put his hand on top of yours, "I know we will." 

"So, who's going to fight you in the final act?" You asked, wanting to change the topic of conversation. 

"Well... I was hoping you could?" Grimm asked, hopeful. 

"I would love to," you said. 

"Wonderful," his childlike excitement for theatrics returned. You couldn't help but smile at his excitement as we walked around, making sure everything was ready. 

You heard the audience from behind the curtain and it sounded like it was a full house, so you peered through a small gap in the curtains to see for yourself. It indeed was a full house, but there was one bug that stood out from all of the rest. One of them was sitting on a throne in the center of the front row, and you assumed them to be royalty. 

Grimm walked up next to you. "Are you ready?" You asked him. 

He took a breath in and out, "Yes." He used the power of Nightmare Flame to teleport onto the stage. 

"Welcome, ladies and gentlemen!" you heard his voice boom from behind the curtains. "Tonight, we have a wonderful show for you. From playing with fire, to a pianist unlike you've ever seen, it will truly be an unforgettable show!" He said. "We hope you do enjoy, your majesty," he said, and you could see him bow through the gap in the curtains. 

Grimm suddenly appeared next to you again. "Hopefully that will suffice as a good introduction," he said. 

"It was great," you reassured. You went to the side of the curtain, watching the show from a point where you knew the audience couldn't see you. It was a familiar sight, seeing the novice Grimmkin wowing the audience with the power of Nightmare Flame. You continued to watch, as the novices went off stage and the Masters took their place. The name Masters fit their abilities very well, as they were incredibly skilled with the Flame. They were creating incredibly intricate designs in the air with the Flame, impressing even the King. 

As they were walking off stage, you made your way to the piano on stage. You sat down in front of the keys, and Grimm appeared in front of you to introduce you to the audience. 

"This is (y/n)," he said, lowering his voice to sound mysterious. "From another world, on the surface, he may not look like you or me, but he is one of the most talented and mysterious beings in this world," his voice sounded ominous and dramatic. "I am incredibly honored to introduce, (y/n), the human pianist!" 

You weren't able to come up with anything on the spot, so you resorted to playing La Campanella again. You started the song out powerfully, making your skill known to the audience. As you made your way through the piece, you could see in the reflection of the wood on the piano that your eyes were glowing red once more. You stayed determined though and flawlessly played the piece. Once you finished, you stood and received a tremendous amount of applause. 

Grimm walked out on stage and stood next to you. "For our final act, we will be displaying the greatest amount of power we can!" His voice was booming once more. "(y/n) is one of the most powerful people I know, and tonight I will prove that!" He lowered his voice so that only you could hear, "Are you ready?" 

"Of course," you said. "Should I bring in the power of Dreams too?" You asked. 

"If you want to," he said. "But you don't have to." He gave you a small smile. 

"Alright," you replied. 

You and Grimm walked to opposite ends of the stage and turned to face each other. You both bowed at each other. Grimm took off his cloak, visually cueing you that he was ready. You got into a fighting stance and pushed your hair out of your face, cueing him that you were ready. All at once, the lights cut and spotlights were on you two. 

Grimm teleported and appeared in front of you suddenly, instinctively you jumped back. You quickly shot a beam of fire from your open hand, making sure it wouldn't hurt Grimm, but he spun out of the way, narrowly avoiding it. He then launched an attack of his own at you, firing three bats made of Flame at you. You jumped over them and while you were midair, you used the Nightmare Flame to suspend yourself in the air. Grimm jumped up to meet you in the air, launching fireballs up as he did. You then teleported from the air to the ground so you were directly underneath him. You created a pillar of fire and shot it up underneath Grimm, landing a hit.

He pretended as if he was injured, but then winked to let you know he was okay. You shot him a quick smirk and decided to switch things up. You called upon the power of Dreams, and without realizing it, the same golden lines that appeared on your body in the city were now visible again. You looked at the audience and saw all eyes on you, some people's mouths were agape. You summoned dull nails that were pure white and fired them at Grimm, missing intentionally. You used the power of Dreams to suspend yourself in the air once more, hovering off of the ground. 

You summoned a pillar of harmless light and brought it down upon Grimm, who narrowly avoided it. You then called upon the powers of Nightmare and Dream at once for a final attack. You used the Flame to trap Grimm within a circle of fire, then summoned dull, white nails around all sides of him. Seeing all of the nails and fire surrounding him, he yielded. 

You were quick to remove the nails and fire and you floated down from the air to be by his side. The audience's applause was roaring. 

"Are you hurt?" You quickly asked. 

"I'm quite alright, (y/n)," he said with a smile, making sure you could only hear him. He looked at the audience. "Should I tell them, or do you want to?" 

You sighed, "I will." You turned and faced the audience. "I am (y/n). I am a human, and I am not from here," the audience's eyes were all on you as you raised your voice so they could hear you. "I contain both the power of Nightmares and Dreams within me. I understand that you refer to me as the Restorer of Balance," some of the audience gasped. "No, I am not dead," you said, laughing slightly. "I simply went back to my world. But I am here now," you said. "Thank you for coming to the show everyone. Good night!" You grabbed Grimm's hand and teleported him and you behind the curtain. 

You could hear quiet murmuring in the audience from backstage. On stage, you were calm and collected, but now that you knew they couldn't see you, your fear and anxieties made themselves known incredibly quickly. 

A royal guard made his way backstage, "Restorer of Balance, the King is requesting an audience with you." 

"Could you give us a minute?" Grimm asked him. "Damn, they're quick," he said under his breath. 

"Of course," the guard said, walking back out into the hallway. 

"Hey, hey," Grimm said seeing that you were beginning to freak out. He pulled you close to him. "It's okay. It's okay," he reassured.

You were afraid of what they would think of you, that fear now taking over every other emotion. 

"What if they're scared of me?" You asked. 

"(y/n)," Grimm said, looking you dead in the eyes. "They have a plaque built in your honor, they have no reason to fear you." 

You took a shaky breath in and out. "You're right... you're right. I'm sorry, this all just happened very fast." 

"It's okay, (y/n)," he said, pulling you into another tight embrace. "If you need to take a moment then please don't hesitate to do so," he reassured. "I can deal with the King," he said. 

You sighed, "Thank you, Grimm. I'll come out and meet with him in a minute." 

Grimm walked outside and closed the door behind him. You took a minute to recollect yourself. You managed to gain control of your emotions once more, calming yourself down. Now that you were feeling better, you went out to go and speak with the King. 

You found your cloak that you had hung up on the wall and put it on before walking out into the hallway. You saw Grimm speaking with the bug you figured was the King. He was incredibly tall, had all-black robes on, and was wearing a distractingly shiny golden crown. 

"Ah, there he is," said the King, seeing you. He took your hand into his and began to shake it, "This is a thing they do in your world, yes?"

"Yes," you said chuckling. "What is it you wish to speak with me about, your majesty?" You asked, bowing slightly. The King was a tall, dark butterfly. His wings were a dull grey and his skin was like looking into a void. He had long white hair pulled up into a bun on the back of his head, the hair on the sides of his head was shaven incredibly short.

"I want to hear the full story, (y/n). I want to know how you managed to slay the Nightmare King and The Radiance and took their powers, just to restore balance," he said, intrigued. 

"Well, for starters, I didn't slay either of them," you said. "The power of Nightmares was given to me by the Nightmare Heart after I joined the Grimm Troupe, and I stole the power of Dreams from The Radiance to release Hallownest from her plague," you explained. 

"You didn't slay them?" He said, pondering. "That's even more impressive... Where are they now?" he asked. 

"The Nightmare King is in the Nightmare Realm, and he is actually the reason I returned. He and I have business we need to take care of," you explained. "The Radiance is in the custody of the Pale King of Hallownest. What he's doing to her I have no idea." 

"Fascinating... I've never been a big fan of Hallownest" the King of Stolia admitted. "Their monarch is incredibly self-absorbed. I've heard they're in the midst of some crazy war amongst themselves, but I wouldn't worry about it. They always come back from stuff like that." 

"Well, their political squabbles have nothing to do with us," Grimm chimed in. You agreed, what the Pale King was doing was none of your business, you just enjoyed Hallownest for the scenery. You wondered how the Pure Vessel was doing, and you began to stare into the distance at nothing, losing yourself in thought. 

"So," the King started. "You're a human, yes?" 

"Indeed I am," you confirmed, snapping back to the conversation. 

"I had heard reports of a human-looking character within our kingdom, but I didn't believe any of them," he said. "There was one man who claimed to have met you by our fountain. So... is your being human the reason you can contain the two powers at once?" 

"I believe so," you said. "The Nightmare King always said no one bug can contain both powers at once, but I figured I would at least try to since I'm not a bug," you explained. "Now I'm here." 

"Interesting..." he said. You didn't really trust the King, but you figured you would at least tell him the truth. "Well it was a pleasure to meet you, (y/n)." He said. "I must get going now." 

"Take care, your majesty," you said, bowing. 

Grimm approached you as he left and placed a hand on your shoulder. "Quite the character." 

You let out a small laugh, "Indeed he was." 

"Well, what's say we get to bed?" He asked. 

"That sounds like a wonderful idea," you confirmed. 

~~~

You were in a familiar red forest. Walking along a familiar red path. Your head began to ache in a familiar way. You found a familiar clearing, with a familiar hill in the center; a familiar tree perched on top. As you came up to the base of the hill, your head began to throb in searing pain. You tried your hardest to tough it out, beginning to ascend up the hill. You didn't make it up any more than six or seven steps before you fell to your knees, the pain being unbearable. Your vision faded into nothingness, but it did not scare you anymore. 

You sighed as you found yourself in your college dorm room. Dream catcher particles floating through the air, mocking you. They knew what was coming, and so did you. Your heart was racing as you walked out onto the empty street. The air had an insidious peacefulness to it. Tears were already beginning to form, even before you heard his voice. 

"(y/n)?" His voice echoed. 

"It's not real... it's not real... it's not real..." you whispered to yourself repeatedly. 

"You're right," he said. "It's not." 

You finally turned to face Grimm, tears streaming down your face. 

"What does this mean, Grimm?" You asked desperately. "Why does this happen to you? Why don't you know about this when we wake up?" Your voice was getting hasty. 

"I'm not me," he said simply. "I'm you." 

His words hit incredibly hard, like a punch in the gut. 

"So what then? Do I just have to watch you die every night now?" You asked, crying still. 

He simply shrugged. "That's up to you." 

"What do you mean?" You asked. 

He was about to respond, but his words were cut off by a nail flying through his chest and sticking out the front of his carapace. 

"Tell me, Grimm." You demanded, tears falling fast. "While you still can, tell me! Please!" 

"I love you," he said. After that, his body turned to dust and floated away in the wind. 

Tears were falling down your face, but your vision remained. You were still in the dream. 

"This is normally when it ends," you said to no one. "Why am I still here?" 

"Because I need you, (y/n)," you heard the Nightmare King's voice in your head. "You know what we have to do, it's why you came to the troupe, do not forget." His voice seemed tired yet demanding. 

"I'll go to the Nightmare Realm when I wake up, I just need some time to prepare," you said, the tears on your face beginning to dry and stick. 

"Don't forget, (y/n)," his voice echoed in your mind. 

All at once, you shot up out of your bed with a sharp intake of air. You looked around at the pomegranate walls surrounding you and knew you were back in the tent. 

Your rapid breathing began to slow as you recollect your thoughts. You got out of bed and got dressed, throwing on a black formal button-up with a white tie and red vest on top. You grabbed a cloak and mask to cover your identity and went outside. Before you went, however, you left a note for Grimm. 


	5. Anaseia

You were in your room reading a book when you heard a crash in the kitchen. You quickly put the book down and ran out into the kitchen and saw your mother on the ground, sitting with her back pressed to the fridge, tears streaming down her face and her breathing rapid. She looked mortified. 

"Hey, hey, hey," you said, kneeling down next to her. These episodes of hers were starting to become more common. "Look at me, look at me," you said. She made eye contact with you and you could see her eyes were wide and teary, her lip was quivering. "With me, okay?" You asked. This was a routine you had gotten used to the more this happened. "In..." you said. "Out... In... Out..." She was beginning to time her breathing with your words. "In... Out..." The quiver in her lip began to slow to a stop and the tears began to stop falling. "In... Out..." Her breathing was returning to normal. "There we go," you said. "In... Out..." 

She sighed, wiping the dry tears from her face "Thank you, (y/n)." She pulled you into an embrace. 

"Of course, mom." 

~~~

You pushed the random memory out of your head as you continued towards the hill above the city. You needed a place to speak privately with the Nightmare King, but you also wanted to get there without being interrupted, so you brought a mask to cover your identity. As you were walking, the Nightmare Heart's beat was starting to get louder in your ears, which is something it hadn't done in a long time. 

As you climbed up the hill, you sat at the very peak and removed your mask. The wind was harsh on your face as you looked over the city. 

"Okay..." you said to yourself. "Let's go." 

You began to focus hard, focusing on the Nightmare Realm, focusing on being in the Nightmare Realm. You began to feel a tugging sensation on your chest and your vision faded into nothingness. 

As you began to be able to see again, you saw were in your room in your mother's apartment. The Nightmare King was sitting in the chair by your desk, looking on as you slowly sat up in the bed. 

"Finally," he said. 

"I'm... I'm sorry for my absence," you said. "I just... seeing Grimm again..." you were struggling to find the words. 

"It's fine," he said shortly. "Let's just get down to it, shall we?" 

"O-okay," you replied. The Nightmare King stood and cast a spell that created a red dome over you two. "So that we can speak in private," he explained. 

"Of course," you said. 

He went and sat back down before speaking, "The Nightmare Heart is... losing itself, to say the least," he said. "This long without the ritual hasn't been good for it. We've been intentionally putting it off so that it would be too weak to properly fight back when we go to fight it," he explained. 

"But won't the Heart just take our powers away if we try to use them in a fight?" You asked. 

"The Heart stole _my_ powers from me," The Nightmare King said. "It won't be able to take them from me, and I'll make sure it won't take them from you." 

"Alright..." you said. You were skeptical of this whole plan but you agreed to it because you didn't want to face the consequences of what would happen if you didn't. The Heart would demand the ritual, and the ritual means Grimm's death, which you would prevent from happening at all costs. "So how do we attack it?" 

"We'll have to go into the Nightmare Realm when it can't see us," he said. "Normally it would be suicide to attempt to kill a god in its own realm, however, there are some vantages to it." 

"Like what?" You asked. 

"Our powers will also be enhanced," he said. "And with you, we also have the power of Dreams on our side, something that it can't fight against in the Nightmare Realm." 

"So when do we attack?" You asked. 

"I'll let you know when the time is right, but for now expect to wait for at least a month," he said. "That's a rough estimate, so there's a good chance it won't be that long, but there's also something I need to do before we go in and attack." 

"Okay," you said. "Is there anything else I need to know before we do this?" 

"Nothing else that comes to mind, no," he said. 

"Okay, I'll catch you later," you said, giving him a small wave. 

"Until we meet again, (y/n)," he said. He brought his hand up to snap and all of a sudden you jolted awake atop the hill again. 

You looked around and found your mask sitting in the grass. You put it over your face and quickly went back to the tent. 

~~~

You opened the flap to the tent and walked inside. 

"Fuck," you whispered to yourself, seeing the torches on the walls were lit. You remembered that when the torches were lit it meant that people were awake for the day. 

As you walked through the halls, you tried to get to your room as quietly as possible. 

"(y/n)?" You heard Grimm's voice behind you. "(y/n) where were you?"

You turned around and saw that his face had concern painted all over it. "I just needed a place to talk to the Nightmare King," you said. "I'm sorry... I should have told you I was leaving." 

"You should have," he said, "But it's okay." He pulled you close to him. "So what did he tell you?" 

"That the Heart is weak, and we'll have to fight him within a month from now," you explained. 

"Well, I'll try to be ready for that by then," he said. "It'll be tough." 

"It _will_ be tough, yes," you said. "I'm not sure you should go, Grimm." Your voice was laced with concern. 

He sighed, "We had this argument with the Radiance," he pointed out. "I left you alone once, I won't do it again." 

"I don't know," you said. "I don't even want to do this myself, I don't want to lose you too." 

He put both of his hands on your shoulders and looked you in the eyes, "(y/n). I'll be fine." 

"You don't know that..." you said, trying in vain to convince him to stay. 

"Neither do you," he said. "Look, I love you more than anything. I don't want to leave you to fight a god in his own realm. Not again." He seemed distraught. "I was so worried about the fight with the Radiance, it took so long. You were gone for almost an entire day." 

You gave him a sad smile. "I love you too." You couldn't think of anything else to say, he had clearly made up his mind

~~~

You and Grimm were walking through the city, looking at shops, going into tourist attractions, etc. Tonight was when Grimm would use the Nightmare Realm to move the tent to the next kingdom. 

"Which one should we go with?" He asked. He and you were looking at a map of all the various kingdoms around. You were sitting with him atop the hill once more, the sky was a light grey color and you could feel a warmth coming from it. 

"Which ones have we been too?" You asked, leaning against Grimm to look at the map. 

"All of these," he said, gesturing to greyed out names on the map. 

"Hmmm," you hummed. There was a gentle breeze blowing, making your hair fall in front of your eyes. "Should I just pick a random one, or...?" You asked. You still didn't know how to read the language the map was written in, much like the menu at the restaurant. 

"Go for it," he said, giving you a small smile. 

You closed your eyes and placed your finger on the map. You opened them again and moved your finger to the one closest to where your finger landed. "That one." 

"That one it is, then," he said, folding the map and putting it back in his cloak pocket. 

"What's it called?" You asked, curious. 

"Anaseia," he said. 

"Ooh," you said. "Very pretty sounding." 

"I've never been there myself," he said. "I don't know what it's like there." 

"Well, it'll be a new experience for the both of us then," you said, smiling up at him. 

He let out a small chuckle. "You're adorable," he said, pulling you close to him. "It's starting to get late," he pointed out. "It would probably be a good idea to head back." 

You took in a long intake of air and let it out slowly, "Ok." 

You stood up and held your hand to help him stand up. As you and Grimm were walking down the hill you looked at the sky. The shade of grey still seemed as light as ever. "How do you know it's getting late?" 

"You can tell from the direction of the wind," he said. "It's blowing against our backs, which means it's almost night" 

You stopped to think. "Odd." 

"What's odd about it?" He asked. "How do you figure it out in your world?" 

"We have the sun to tell us what time it is," you said as if it was obvious. 

"Your sun tells you the time?" He asked. "Ours just keeps us warm." 

"Well we use the sun's position in the sky to tell us the time," you said. "Looking up, I can see that you probably don't see your sun very often." 

"No, never," he said. 

You two had made it to the bottom of the hill at that point and were walking back into town. You and Grimm began to walk along the main road and as you passed by crowds of people you could hear their hushed whispers. You just ignored it as you and Grimm made your way back to the tent. 

~~~

"Okay everyone, huddle together!" Grimm commanded. He had gotten all of the Grimmkin outside the tent and made them stand in one big group bunched up to one another. It was time to move the tent to Anaseia, and no one was particularly happy about it. He extended his arms out and began to focus. All at once, a black smog appeared up from the ground. It enveloped the crowd and once it disappeared, you could see that the Grimmkin had vanished. 

"Now the tents?" You asked. 

He nodded. "This must be your first time seeing us do this," he said. 

"No, didn't we do this to move the tents from the City to the Palace Grounds in Hallownest?" You recalled. 

"Oh, yes," he said. "We did do that." He then began to focus hard on the tents. Again, a black smog rose from the ground and encircled you two and the tents. You watched as the smog darted around you in a circle, rising up ever so slowly. Once it fully enveloped you, you saw Grimm bring his arms back down to his sides. You could hear the chatter of Grimmkin slowly fade into earshot, and once the smog fully descended, you saw that you were in an entirely foreign place. 

You looked around and saw that you were atop an incredibly dense forest. There were bridges leading from tree to tree, and in the distance you could see a couple of waterfalls, creating a peaceful white noise. As you looked further, you saw that there were buildings carved directly into the trees, and there were torches lining the bridges for light. A brilliant beam of blue light was falling down through a hole in the leaf cover above your heads. 

"Not necessarily what I expected," you admitted. 

"Me neither," Grimm said, looking around in awe, much like you were. 

"Hello!" You heard a female voice call out. You saw a figure wearing a beautiful black dress approaching you. "You must be the Grimm Troupe!" Her voice seemed to have what could almost be described as a British accent. 

"Yes, that is us," Grimm confirmed. "You might be?" 

Once she approached fully, you were dumbfounded at what you saw. She was a human. 

"Oh my," she said. "Another human? I didn't think I'd see any others in this world." 

"I-I didn't think I'd see any either..." you said, at a loss for words. You suddenly looked at Grimm. "I thought you destroyed the necklace." Faint visions of a crimson necklace appeared in your mind. It was what brought you here in the first place, but when you left you made sure Grimm had destroyed it. 

"I did," he said. 

"How did you get here?" You asked her. 

She sighed. "My name is Stella, nice to meet you too." She seemed a small bit annoyed. 

"I'm sorry," you apologized. "I'm (y/n)," you held out your hand for her to take. She took it and shook it with grace. 

"To answer your question, I don't know. I've been here since childhood," she said. "I grew up here, and now I rule this kingdom. What about you?" 

"I was brought here by a magic necklace that his ancestors made," you said, gesturing to Grimm. He gave her a small wave. "I was bound to servitude of the Nightmare Heart about a year ago." 

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that? Are you his slave then?" She asked, looking at Grimm with anger, drawing a weapon from within her dress. 

You let out a chuckle, "No, I'm his boyfriend." 

"Oh," she said with a small voice. She slowly sheathed her weapon and stood up straight. 

"Hello," Grimm said, bowing slightly. "My name is Grimm. It's a pleasure to meet you." 

"Sorry about that," she apologized.

"It's quite alright," he said. 

"He's just as much a servant to the Nightmare Heart as I," you explained to Stella. "We're currently looking for a way to sever ourselves from it, but we're also performing kingdom to kingdom." 

"Seems like a lot," she said. "Wouldn't want to overwork yourself." 

You sighed. "I've overworked myself plenty of times," you said. "College is college." You remembered that she said she grew up here when you realized she was looking at you with just as much confusion as Grimm. "Nevermind." 

"You seem to be quite powerful, (y/n)," she said. "I can see that much." 

"I guess so, yeah," you said. "The last kingdom we were at referred to me as 'The Restorer Of Balance,' so..." 

Stella looked surprised. "Oh, that's you? Makes sense." 

Grimm chimed in. "We have a performance tomorrow and it seems to be getting late," he clearly wanted to speak with you privately because Grimm never ended conversations prematurely otherwise. "If you don't mind, we should probably get going to sleep." 

"Oh, yes," she said. "Don't let me keep you." 

You and Grimm bowed. "Thank you, your majesty," you said. 

"Oh please," she replied. "It's Stella." 

"O-okay. Goodnight, Stella," you said. 

"Goodnight, (y/n), Goodnight, Grimm," she replied. When you came up from your bow you saw that she vanished. 

"Where did she go?" You asked Grimm. 

"I have no idea, she just disappeared basically," he said. 

"So what is it you wanted to talk about?" You asked. 

"Let's go inside first," he said. With that, Grimm led you back inside the tent.


	6. A New Kingdom

"I don't trust her, (y/n)" Grimm said. You and he were inside the tent in his room. "Her story just... doesn't make sense. She was just... _brought_ here during youth?" 

He was pacing around the room as you sat on his bed. "I don't trust her either, Grimm," you admitted. "First of all, her name is Stella. I don't know if you know this but that is an incredibly common name on Earth. Second, she has a British accent," you pointed out. 

Grimm looked confused. 

"The way she pronounced her words is precisely the way a certain group of people on Earth does," you said. "Maybe it's just something she picked up as a child and forgot about, but it doesn't make sense to me." 

He kept pacing. 

"Grimm, sit down, love," you said, patting the bed next to you, signaling him to sit there. 

He stayed standing and paced furthermore. "It's not the _why_ she's here that bothers me, it's the _how_... How did she get here?" 

You sighed, "I don't know, Grimm." All you wanted was for him to stop pacing and lay down next to you in bed, you were incredibly tired and so was he. 

"Well of course _you_ don't," he said nonchalantly, continuing to pace. His words felt like a sharp jab. 

You stood up, "Excuse me?" You were incredibly angry with Grimm's comment. 

He immediately stopped pacing. "(y/n), I am so sorry," he said immediately. He grabbed your hands and held them in his, "That didn't come out the way I meant it to-" 

"How did you mean it to?" You asked, face expressionless. 

He struggled to answer the question. 

"How did you mean it to? It's a simple question," you said, dropping your hands out from within his. You placed them akimbo on your hips as you waited for an answer. 

"I... I shouldn't have said that" he said, breaking eye contact. "I'm sorry." His voice was incredibly small compared to earlier while talking to Stella. 

You sighed. "You're not wrong about it, though. I'm not from here, so I wouldn't know." You grabbed his hands and held them in yours. "We're both tired, let's just get some sleep?" You asked, giving him a small smile. It was incredibly hard for you to stay mad at him for very long. 

He sighed and gave a soft smile, "That sounds like a good idea." With that, you and he went to bed. Cuddling with Grimm in bed, you fell asleep with ease. 

~~~

You were walking through a red forest. "Ugh, again?" You said out loud to nobody. You walked through the forest, a feeling of unease creeping up your back. You kept going until you reached the hill. You decided to run up the hill, seeing how far you could make it before the dream turned. As you were running, the pain in your head increased in intensity very quickly. About halfway up, you finally fell to your knees. You laid down on the grass, looking up at the maroon sky, waiting for your vision to fade away. As you laid, you remembered being on the hill in Stolia with Grimm. As you suspected, your vision faded away into your old college dorm room. 

"Let's just get this over with," you muttered to yourself. You stood up and walked outside. You decided to walk the other direction down the street, instead of the way you had always gone. Right as you began to walk in the opposite direction you heard Grimm's voice. 

"(y/n)," he called out. "This way." 

You turned and saw him, this time he was wearing the white robes of the palace in Hallownest he hated so much. You knew that he wasn't your Grimm. "Walk with me?" You asked as you approached him. You took his hands and held them in yours. "Please?" 

He gave a soft smile. "Okay." 

You gave him a quick embrace before beginning to walk, holding his hand all the while. As you walked with him, you could see something in the distance. You couldn't tell what it was until you got closer. It was you. You stared at yourself standing in front of you. The other you was wearing a white robe as well, but it appeared to have intricate, golden lines and patterns all over it. The other you's eyes were glowing an iridescent red. 

"Thank you for bringing him to me," the other you said with a warm smile. As he said that, Grimm's hand dropped from yours and into the other you's. Your mind was full of confusion and running with thoughts as they began to walk away into the light. Your thoughts were immediately cut off by a white nail shooting out through the front of your chest. Your breath was taken from you, and you could feel your body failing. 

With a sharp intake of air, you jolted up in bed. Grimm was immediately awakened and sat up next to you. "Are you okay, (y/n)?" He asked, putting a hand on your shoulder. 

"I... I don't know, honestly," you said, putting your hand on his. "I keep having a repeated dream, but this time I realized I was dreaming and went the opposite way than I normally did," you explained. "You were there too," you said. 

"Was it the dream where I get... killed?" He asked. 

"Yeah... but this time was different. You appeared earlier because I walked in the wrong direction. You were also wearing the white robes from the palace that you hate." You sighed. "We walked together, you and I. We walked until we came across another version of me. You then walked off with that other version of me into the light." You explained. 

He slowly wrapped his arms around you and pulled you into his chest. It was an incredibly comforting feeling. "Whatever happens in your dreams, I'll be here for you when you wake up," he said. "I love you, (y/n)." 

You looked up and smiled. "I love you too, Grimm." Slowly, you and he laid back down. He still had his arms wrapped around you, and you were still pressed up against him. Falling back wasn't difficult. 

~~~

You woke up hours later, feeling the warmth of outside seep through the tent walls. You slowly got up, trying not to wake Grimm as you did. Once you were up, you went back to your room to change into other clothes. You found a black sleeveless top and put it on, throwing an oversized cloak over top of it, leaving your shoulders exposed. You walked outside and into the open air. 

The smell was incredibly refreshing, and unlike Stolia, there was visible sunlight. The warm air felt great on your skin. The white noise of the large waterfall in the distance was incredibly relaxing. 

"Good morning, (y/n)," you heard Grimm's voice and you turned towards the tent door. He came outside wearing a simple black button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up and the top buttons were undone. 

"Good morning," you said. He offered his hand and you took it. "This kingdom is unlike anything I've seen." 

"It is," Grimm said, looking around and admiring the natural beauty the kingdom presented. "It reminds me of the Greenpaths of Hallownest." 

You paused to think. "Yeah, I guess you're right." You remember traveling through Greenpath with Grimm on the way to Blue Lake. You immediately had a thought. "I wonder if they have something like the Blue Lake here?" 

Grimm smiled. "Do you want to go and see?" 

You smiled back, your cheeks flushed, "I'd like that." 

_Not me just forgetting to update for like two weeks. Sorry for not doing so, I've just been caught up with... life stuff. Anyways, expect an update for Burn The Father by the end of the week as well! I've hit a real writer's block with that story but I think I'm finally ready to update it. So far, I'm enjoying the rewrite of this story a lot more. I think that it's turning out way better than I could've hoped for, and I have plenty of ideas for it in the future. For now, though, take care and be good people._

_-avocado (aka munch)_


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